US Africa Command announced on Saturday that its forces launched two more airstrikes in Somalia as the Trump administration continues to bomb the country at a record pace, an air campaign with virtually no media coverage of the conflict in the US.
AFRICOM said that one of the strikes was launched on June 14 and targeted al-Shabaab northwest of Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu. The command said the other strike was launched on June 15 in Somalia’s northeastern Puntland region and targeted the ISIS affiliate in the area.
AFRICOM offered no other details about the airstrikes as it has stopped sharing figures on casualties and assessments of civilian harm. “Specific details about units and assets will not be released to ensure continued operations security,” the command said in both press releases.
In Puntland, the US is backing local forces against ISIS while it’s backing the Mogadishu-based Federal Government in southern and central Somalia against al-Shabaab. The government controls very little territory within Somalia’s internationally recognized borders, and experts say it can’t beat al-Shabaab militarily.
Based on the count from AFRICOM, the newly announced airstrikes bring the total number of US bombings in the country this year to 42. The Trump administration is well on its way to breaking the record for the number of US airstrikes in Somalia in a single year, which President Trump set at 63 during his first term in 2019.
